i_luv_sgm@hotmail.com Report post Posted August 5, 2009 We are in the initial stages of planning a trip from Tennessee to the Grand Canyon and Zion National Park. What is the best time of year to make this trip? We are open to suggestions for other areas to visit while traveling in that direction. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 kingfr Report post Posted August 6, 2009 I would say early fall. It's too hot in the summer and too windy in the spring. We were at the south rim of the canyon in late October of 2007 and it was great. We had an awning ripped off of our coach on I40 in western Oklahoma in May a few years ago. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 tbutler Report post Posted August 7, 2009 With any popular national park, the best time to be there is the off season. Go for a time when few people are on vacation and the schools and colleges are in session and you'll find smaller crowds. It gets powerfully cold on the rim of the Grand Canyon in late fall through winter into the spring. The elevation of the rim is about 7,000 feet above sea level. Be prepared for some cold weather any time of year. In addition to Zion, I would include Bryce Canyon. Canyonlands National Park has some good 4WD roads that allow you to explore canyons. There are a whole host of other geologic wonders in Utah. Arches National Park, Natural Bridges National Monument, Capital Reef National Park, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, and Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area are just a few of the biggest attractions. There are native American cultural areas all over the area if your interests lie there. If you think that you see one canyon you've seen them all, you will change your mind after you explore a few of these. Each of these canyons gives you a totally different look. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 seajaycecil@yahoo.com Report post Posted August 7, 2009 ''Ditto'' to Tom concerning Utah. It has much to offer and if you get within a hundred miles of Moab and you dont stop and look around you will have one flat tire and your commode will stop up permanently, you wont like that. Willa and I stayed in Zion for ten days last fall I think. (the memories all run together now.) Zion has a dry campground with large sights and they are cheap if you have the ''Golden age pass'' The sights there are breathtaking with the Aspen trees ''in color''. Concerning Utah, you can spend a lot of time exploring Utah. Utah is a state with all the skin scraped off and the bones showing thru. If you are adventurous you can ''dry camp'' out in CAnyonlands National Park. The camping area will be on the right hand side of the road as you go in. You can camp on the edge of a cliff that is about a ''Kazillion feet above the river''. You can ''tinkle'' over the edge and it will evaporate before it hits anything. The sunsets are un believable and it so QUIET you can hear GOD walking around in heaven. Word to the wise.. WATCH OUT FOR RATTLERS AND SCORPIONS IN THE EVENING. Thats when they come out to play. Be sure and take firewood with you also. Build a fire and just watch the shooting stars and listen to the coyotes do their ''sing song''............... Grand Canyon is a ''must see'' destination and well worth the trip but when we get in the area of Utah and Moab, we always stop for a look around. We have been to Utah more than six times and we still love it. The area around Grand Canyon and surrounding states is some of the most beautiful country in the USA and you can spend a lot of time just looking, listening, tasting and absorbing the ambiance of that area. Some folks hate it because there are no trees to speak of. I love it because it the earth with no clothes on. Seajay the sailor man Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 DoggyDaddy Report post Posted August 7, 2009 When in the area of the Grand Canyon a short drive away is the town of Oatman AZ that is on The Mother Road, historic Route 66 a short distance from Laughlin NV and Hoover Dam. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 kingfr Report post Posted August 8, 2009 Speaking of Canyons, we just visited the Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP, just east of Montrose, Colorado. It is spectacular. There is a nice campground in Montrose called Cedar Creek RV Park. It is small, well kept, and reasonable! If you really want an exciting drive, make the trip from Durango Co. to Montrose via US 550 through Silverton and Ouray. We did it yesterday. It is breathtaking. (In more ways than one!) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 seajaycecil@yahoo.com Report post Posted August 9, 2009 Yooh Frank....... Been there ,,,,,, Done that. You went across Wolf Creek Pass and ended up in Pegosa Springs. Yep, We went across that and I became a Christian four times. I told the Lord that if he would let me live thru this that I would be a ''good boy'' for the rest of my life. I love the part when you leave Silverton and wind your way up the pass. The ''no guard rail'' on the side of the road is a real thrill. A couple of places were so high up that if We had went over the side we would have starved to death before we hit the bottom. Sometime, if you want a real thrill, RIDE THE TRAIN ACROSS. We did and they had to stop several times to clear rocks off the track. On one side of the train you can kiss the rocks going by and on the other side you cant even see the ground till you look down several hundred feet. Its a hoot. I believe I have driven across every pass crossing the Rockie Mountains at least once and a lot of them, several times. Want a real thrill.......... TRY LOSING YOUR BRAKES COMING DOWN THE MONARCH PASS. Done that ONCE...... WOW... Black Canyon is another thrill. You ''ride the rim'' and look down at the birds and hawks flying under you. A long time ago I went up to Black Canyon before it became a national park. Shamefully now, we sat on the rim and shot .22's at the birds on the wing flying below us. There is a stretch of mountains out there somewhere called THE SAW TOOTH. I dont think it is in Colorado.. It is not really a ''pass'' its more like a scenic drive along the top ridge of the mountains. It is a single lane road, west to east as I remember, that is one way and just as wide as a car.... DO NOT TAKE YOUR COACH OR A TRAILER UP THERE... I cant remember where it is but heading east it is on the left hand side of the road and it is well marked. You wind your way up one mountain and crawl along a road that is as wide as your car. The road is literally ''on top'' of the mountains and the mountains tops are simply pushed together and turned into a road. The road is at least 1000 feet off the valley floor and almost vertical on both sides looking down. You feel like you are ''flying''. There are a couple of pull offs up there for photos to show folks how brave (stupid) you were to go up there...... While you are out there go to Royal Gorge and fish from the bridge. lol. And be sure to go to Cripple Creek mining camp. You will win a fortune out there. lol ....(yeah sure) If they still have it, go to the IMPERIAL HOTEL and see the mellow drama they put on in the basement. Really good. If you have the time go to Gunniston and go up to Taylor Park. It is a beautiful park in the Rockies with a nice campground beside the lake and one that is ''lake view'' on the other side of the road. Its a paved road all the way up now but the first time I was out there it was dirt and full of rutts and holes. Colorado is a beautiful state with much to offer. It is the first state I visited back in 1961 and it gave me the ''travel bug'' and I still ''have the fever''. There is much to see out there and I have been there many times and we still love it. I am going to stop before this turns into an essay...... Seajay the sailor man...... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 i_luv_sgm@hotmail.com Report post Posted August 10, 2009 Thanks for all the great and "exciting" suggestions for our trip. Some may be just a "bit" too adventurous for us, but we will definately give some of these places a visit. All we need to do now is jump in the coach and head west!!! Happy Trails (no pun intented)!!! Tiffin Travelers Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 seajaycecil@yahoo.com Report post Posted August 10, 2009 One final thought........ For me, IT IS BETTER TO SEE ''ALL OF SOMETHING'' THAN A LITTLE OF A LOT OF THINGS''. This is the prophecy Willa and I have lived by in our travels. To us its like a good meal. Go slow, ENJOY, stop and look, SMELL THE ROSES, do absolutely nothing occasionally, NEVER EVER HURRY, watch the sun set, LISTEN TO THE EARTH BREATHE, and if you cant get to IT on this trip, IT will be there for your next trip. Seajay the sailor man.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 mapleskoff@gmail.com Report post Posted August 11, 2009 We enjoyed visiting the Utah parks and southern CO in October super. Zion, as mentioned by Seajay and the use of the pass is super. Visit Arches too. Colorado and Utah with the Aspen trees in fall foliage are wonderful to view; shimmering like gold in the breeze. Dress for changing weather....layering clothes a good idea as days can get warm after chilly mornings. Have a wonderful time. Mike Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
We are in the initial stages of planning a trip from Tennessee to the Grand Canyon and Zion National Park. What is the best time of year to make this trip? We are open to suggestions for other areas to visit while traveling in that direction.
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